Carmody

I want to use just a little bit of space to talk about one of my favourite series of books. Isabelle Carmody's Obernewtyn Chronicles will have to be one of the most breathtaking adventure novels i have ever read. I have to admit that it took a few attempts to get into it. The first time I read it I didn't like it very much. Although the book can be found in the young adults section with al the other adventure/fantasy novels, the language, and the tone of the novel is much removed from the teen flicks, that use the word 'like' in the wrong context, base themselves around a fantastical romance. Written from first person, you don't feel as though you are following the story of a young teeny bopper. I wasn't ready for that.
I have to thank my mother here for not realising that i wasn't captivated by my first read and gave me the following sequel to me as a christmas gift. Eventually one summer a few years later when i was bored i decided to read it. So i reread the first book again and got into the second and really enjoyed them. Summer finished and my final year of high school sat in front of me. It wasn't until a year later that i decided to return to the fantasy fiction world Carmody had created.
The books are based in a post apocalyptic land that managed to survive the apocalypse. The land is run by a council that out of fear, and desire for control, destroyed all technology. The world the main character Elspeth lives is practically medieval. There is a religious cult that holds power through fear, for anyone born abnormal or against the ways of the council are burned alive. That makes life for Elspeth difficult for she has many mind abilities. The storyline follows our protagonists' quest to find and destroy the machines that caused the apocalypse many years prior before the anonymous antagonists reaches them. Of course that isnt the whole story, for it hasnt even been completed yet. Like Harry Potter, it has many subplots that weave together to form such an enchanting story.
One of the best things i found about the books were that both times i had stopped reading them i had forgotten everything that had happened. It wasn't because they were boring, but because they were so intriguing and fully of detail that i just couldn't remember everything. It was like rereading Harry Potter (which is still one of my favourite series) after not thinking about it for a few years. I know that in a few years time after i finish the series i will be able to return to this series and enjoy it all over again.
The only thing i can really criticise about Carmody's work is the wait. I started reading another series of hers, the legendsong triology, which has a similar feel to the Obernewtyn chronicles, and equally as brilliant, and i found myself waiting for a third book that stil hasnt been released, even though the first was written in the 90's.
But it isnt a big complaint for i understand such great books take time, and with many novels on the go at once it is bound to take a while.
I could have just bored you out of reading the series, but i hope you give it a chance, for i know it will stay upon my bookshelf forever......